138 MASINISSA. 



There was a Berber chief named Masinissa who had 

 been deprived of his estates, and who, during the war, 

 had rendered important services to Rome. He "was 

 made King of Numidia, and it was stipulated in the 

 treaty that the Carthaginians should restore the lands 

 and cities which had belonged to him and to his 

 ancestors. The lands which they had taken from him 

 were accordingly surrendered, and then Masinissa sent 

 in a claim for certain lands which he said had been 

 taken from his ancestors. The wording of the treaty 

 was ambiguous. He might easily declare that the 

 whole of the sea-coast had belonged to his family in 

 ancient times ; and who could disprove the evidence of 

 a tradition ? He made no secret of his design ; it 

 was to drive the Phoenician strangers out of Africa, 

 and to reign at Carthage in their stead. He soon 

 showed that he was worthy to be called the King of 

 Numidia and the Friend of Rome. He drilled his 

 bandits into soldiers ; he taught his wandering shep- 

 herds to till the ground. He made his capital, Con- 

 stantine, a great city ; he opened schools in which the 

 sons of native chiefs were taught to read and w T rite in 

 the Punic tongue. He allied himself with the powers 

 of Morocco and the Atlas. He reminded the Berbers 

 that it was to them the soil belonged ; that the Phoen- 

 icians were intruders who had come with presents in 

 their hands and with promises in their mouths, 

 declaring that they had met with trouble in their 

 own country, and praying for a place where they 

 might repose from the weary sea. Their fathers had 

 trusted them ; their fathers had been bitterly deceived. 

 By force and by fraud the Carthaginians had taken all 

 the lands which they possessed ; they had stolen the 

 ground on which their city stood. 



